Terra's Pryde History
Terra's Pryde History
Terra's Pryde traces it's history back to the Amaris War where Jonas Pryde fought in the SLDF army to liberate Terra from the Usurper. He participated in the liberation of over a dozen worlds and was promoted to command the SLDF LAM fleet due to his skillful use of the hybrid fighters. He quickly confirmed Kerensky's trust by helping to blockade Earth's spaceports and pin down Amaris' escape routes
In the last days of the Battle of Terra, Jonas personally led a regiment of LAMs to close the last escape route open to Amaris. After an hour of fierce fighting between the LAMs and defending mechs, Jonas and five other warriors left the field of battle, the escape route closed. Amaris was captured soon thereafter.
In 2784, Jonas Pryde declined Kerensky's call to all SLDF regiments to leave the Inner Sphere to help protect what he could and gathered a battalion of LAMs around him. Jonas' brother, Thomas Pryde, left with Kerensky, followed by most of his 25th Epsilon Ground Pounders assault regiment.
Historical note (the Jade Falcon remembrance states that it was Aldus Pryde, Thomas's son, who founded the bloodname Pryde when the SLDF Army was in civil war)
Jonas and his new unit, named Terra's Pryde by the men and women in it, returned to Jonas' homeworld Atreus and gave their support to the Mariks. The battle hardened veterans of Terra's Pryde became Marik's showcase LAM unit as it moved from battle to battle, always seeming to turn the tide of losing conflicts due to the innovative tactics that had gotten Kerensky's attention years ago. Soon however, Jonas retired from the battalion and his son George took over. He proved to be every bit the leader his father had been and Terra's Pryde continued to prosper.
But in 2815, their luck finally ran out. Steiner forces assaulting the Marik world of Nester broke through the orbital defenses, but lost their ground assault ships during the battle. Without the ground forces to disable the Nester Industries factory, they pulled their single warship into the orbital bombardment position and began leveling the main factory complex on the outskirts of Capital City. Terra's Pryde, arriving from heavy battle in a nearby system, immediately launched a full scale assault on the Steiner flagship, a Black Lion class battlecruiser. The few surviving Nester aerospace fighters hit the battlecruiser from below, distracting it long enough for the LAMs to land on the warship's hull and begin disabling her weapons one by one.
Steiner fighters strafed the hull of their warship again and again, slowly destroying one LAM after another until only George and Takushi Kurita, his second-in-command, remained. Both LAMs exploded side-by-side under another strafing attack as they destroy the last of the warship's weaponry. Takushi had fulfilled for all time his oath to Jonas never to leave George's side.
Even in death, Terra's Pryde had fulfilled it's mission, saving the civilians from further bombardment, though the factory was a total loss. In recognition of George's service, Marik bestowed a Dukeship on Jonas Pryde, and the Prydes continued to serve the Mariks in many roles for generations.
In 3054, Medron Pryde (returning from Solaris where he was testing a prototype mech) was instrumental in destroying a rebellion against Thomas Marik before it could gain momentum and received the title Knight of the Realm in gratitude. He then turned down an offer for membership in the Knights of the Innersphere and, putting his newfound fame to good use, declared the reestablishment of Terra's Pryde and immediately began receiving applications. In the end, the new unit numbered a battalion of mechs, one company of infantry, two light wings of aerospace fighters, and some support dropships.
Terra's Pryde put itself on the market and was soon sought after for several commissions. Ranging from cadre to pirate hunting, they destroyed a pirate band in the Davion periphery, helped extract a Comstar agent from Gibson and destroyed another pirate band off the Marion Hegemony borders. This last job culminated with an alliance with the Lothian freedom fighters, Terra's Pryde gaining control of a Star League Cache after the First Battle of Pryde Rock and their near complete alliance with Comstar in 3058.
Terra's Pryde then spent 3059 and 3060 making Pryde Rock Industries a reality with the majority of both Prydes protecting the world from attack. They did send covert teams of infantry to Lordinax to keep the Hegemony busy in response to the Caesar's treatment of Terra's Pryde while they were under his employ.
But when the Saint Ives Compact came under attack and Medron instantly led First Pryde to their defense. Second Pryde, led by Medron's brother David, was tasked with defending Pryde Rock alone, and David took Medron's place on the Pryde Rock Industries board of directors.
It was then that the Marian Hegemony, now getting seriously annoyed by Terra's Pryde, decided that Second Pryde would be too weak to hold Pryde Rock from a determined assault. Five regiments of Hegemony troops arrived in the Pryde Rock system, and the Second Battle of Pryde Rock began.
Through our contacts in the Hegemony, we have learned that the forces involved in this attack were the Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth Cohorts of the Praetorian Guard, supported by four Legions of conventional vehicle and infantry support. They were escorted by two wings of the Ala Alba (White Wing), also from the Praetorian Guard.
First Pryde has now returned to Pryde Rock for the slow, painful process of rebuilding, while Medron Pryde has retaken his seat on the board of directors.
Though Pryde can no longer pilot a 'Mech, he is turning into a greater problem then before. We must watch him carefully. After the elevation of the new Caesar on Alphard, Medron traveled there in person to call for an end to their little war. Our contacts on Pryde Rock suggest that he and Elena Logan have become close friends, some say more then friends, and we believe her new position in the Hegemony is one of the reasons Caesar Julius agreed to listen to him. What we know is that Medron agreed to return seven of the jumpships his forces had captured and give the Hegemony access to 'Mechs and vehicles built at Pryde Rock. According to our contacts, Comstar signed off on that beforehand as they didn't want to start supporting Pryde Rock with the ground forces that are already stretched thin by us.
Whatever the truth is behind the negotiations, Pryde Rock and the Hegemony now have a mutual defense treaty, though Pryde Rock will not support a Hegemony invasion of other nations. Pryde Rock Industries has also begun producing variants of some of their 'Mech and vehicle designs with Marian rocket launchers. In fact, Julius was personally given a Thug PR3, with the news weapons replacing her streak systems. Unfortunately, none of our agents in the Hegemony have been able get access to these new 'Mechs and their hi-tech electronics systems. Julius is only giving these very rare 'Mechs to those he trusts, and currently no one in our order is included in that group. We believe that Comstar is attempting to regain control of the HPGs in the Hegemony by using this new backdoor. This must not be allowed and I suggest all operatives entering Pryde Rock be extremely careful.
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